Falling Backwards (A Heroes of Olympus AU and Fanficton)

Chapter 16

"Piper, I thought we were done with you lying all of the time!" Tristan was full on angry now, and Leo was almost in tears.

"Dad, please calm down! You're upsetting Leo!"

"Mellie, would you do us a favor and watch Leo for a little bit?" Jason calmly asked Mellie, who simply nodded and smiled, happy to be of help.

"I'll just be in the next room if you need anything." Then, she turned to her husband. "Remember Gleeson, let's not be violent. Violence doesn't solve everything." Gleeson grunted in agreement, and Mellie gently took Leo and carried him into the room where Jason and Piper were staying.

"Dad, this is the truth." Piper was now desperate. She needed her Dad to know that she wasn't crazy. "Mom is a goddess." She thought for a moment. "I'm not as good at this as Hazel is, but she showed me how to manipulate the Mist somewhat. I can try to push away parts of it." Then, Piper turned to Coach Hedge and they seemed to have a whole conversation in just one look.

"You got it, kid." Gleeson nodded, removing his baseball cap and taking off his pants.

"Gleeson! What in the--"Tristan froze when he saw, and his eyes widened.

"Do you see now, Dad?" Piper asked, her face contorting in concentration. "I wasn't lying, and neither was Laurel."

"I must have gone crazy." Tristan whispered to himself. "That's it. I've gone crazy. My life coach didn't just take off his pants, he doesn't have horns on his head, and he certainly doesn't have animal legs."

"Actually, they're goat legs." Coach Hedge huffed. "I'm a satyr, like in the stories. Mellie's an aura, which are basically air nymphs. And our son, Chuck, is a satyr like me."

"This can't be happening." Tristan looked absolutely terrified now. He looked over at Jason for the first time since this conversation started. "If all of that is real, does that mean that the monsters are real, too?" Jason sighed, thinking about how to explain this delicately.

"Yes, monsters are real." Tristan's face turned white as a ghost. "But so are a lot of other things. And not all 'monsters' are bad. One of my best friends has a pet Hell Hound named Mrs. O'Leary, and she's the sweetest dog. His brother is actually a Cyclops named Tyson. He's a great guy, too. Real sweet. And his girlfriend is a Harpy named Ella. And they're not bad. There are plenty of 'monsters' that aren't evil, and there are some that are. And what you have to know about the evil monsters is how to protect yourself. You probably don't know this, but Laurel has done a fantastic job of protecting you two this far. She's been growing all kinds of plants that have protective magic, and she's taken all kinds of precautions to keep you two from being attacked." Tristan continued to stare at him in horror.

"Tristan, what you have to understand is that all of us have been trained to defend ourselves and the ones we love from the evil monsters." Coach Hedge added, his voice kinder than usual. "Piper can talk her way out of almost any fight, Jason is one of the best swordsman and leader I have ever met, and Laurel has a way with plants that I've never seen. We have learned how to fight and protect ourselves and others, so you have no reason to worry about evil monsters attacking you."

"Who is your mother?" Tristan's voice was shaky. He looked up at Piper and repeated himself. "Who is your mother?"

"Dad," Piper knelt down near him. "Mom is Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. Jason's dad is Jupiter, the Roman god of the skies and king of the gods, and Leo's dad is Hephaestus, Greek god of the forges, blacksmiths, and fire." Piper turned to Laurel. "Laurel, would you like to tell him who your mother is?" Laurel nodded.

"Tristan, my mother is Demeter, the Greek goddess of plants and agriculture."

"Is that why you love plants so much?" Tristan asked softly, and everyone had to strain to hear him.

"Yes, my darling. That's why I love plants so much."

****Sorry about some of the shorter chapters. I've kind of gotten a bit bored of this idea, so I'm gonna continue on with some others.****